It was another late start today at 9am. The Cyclist said that is was flat again and he didn’t want to be woken up by my alarm at 5.30 or 6am. So I set it for 6.30am and pottered doing tea etc in the morning.
Today we are back on the N630 again. That straight bit of road that must run down the right hand side of Spain, north to south. The beauty of the fact it is by the side of the motorway, is that nobody want to be on he road they all want the motorway. Hence I can pull along side The Cyclist to see how he is, have a little chat about whatever either of us has seen and I’m an stop to take photos and stand in the middle of the road.
There are vines everywhere today and I noticed that the vines are grown different to France and Italy. On the Costa Verde the vines were allowed to grow over creating canopies. Here today they are low but allowed to to really bush out. In France the vines are kept trimmed, the trunks are thick and old but they must be cut back each year as the branches are new. See there is something else. A few years ago I mentioned to The Cyclist that I would love to be a wine buyer for one of the major supermarkets. I love a drop of the grape (yes I know they spit it out) and I also love how the different terrains and climates affect the taste. I looked into doing just that as the Cyclist said I was not too o.d as I thought, but in true civil servant style, I didn’t bite the bullet. But I still harbour the desire. Apart from The Cyclist I don’t think I ever told anyone that.
As I drive I am thinking about MM_Scimitar who has an appointment at the QE hospital in Birmingham today. Every cell is hoping for some positive outcome.
Ok. What is the difference between a Finca and Casa. And what about a Chaparral and a Hacienda? What are they? I assume from the old TV series that a Chaparral is a ranch, but maybe I shouldn’t be educated by 1970s American TV?
There is absolutely nothing but dry fields as far as the eye can see. I got the Cyclist to take a photo so you can see what we have seen for the last two days. Basically the N630 and nothing. Nothing but dry grass land and hills as far as you can see.
At road marker N630 Km 740 we entered Andalucia. Not the part of it that tourists normally see though I bet! I have the window open but i have the aircon on my feet to cool drinks for the Cyclist. Today it works better than the fridge.
Tom Hark by The Piranhas came on and I pulled alongside and asked The Cyclist if he remembered it. I had to turn it up loud and once he got the tune he started dancing on the bike. It made me smile Nd on a long long straight road with nothing to see it was quite entertaining. I reached for the camera but as of on purpose a car came zooming up behind me and I had to speed up. I kept re p,saying the track hoping to get a re run but the opportunity didn’t arise after about 6 times through, so I gave up.
One p,ace I waited for The Cyclist was the entrance to a Chaparral. If you are going to have an entrance gate then this is one to have. It’s come a long way since the days of High Chaparral with its three wooden posts that make the entrance.
The N630 Road markers give the Km for how long the road is from its start. we were one it from two hundreds into three hundreds yestarday. today we started in the 600’s and as we pass the 800Km markers it reminded of the Proclaimers song 500 miles but with a change of lyrics. “I would cycle 500 miles and I’ve got to cycle 500 more” etc. Obviously this is because 800Km is exactly 500miles.
As we got to the outskirts of Seville it got a lot busier and hotter. Trying to keep The Cyclist in sight is not easy on busy dual carriageways with no hard shoulder. I drive a lot slower than the traffic so I get overtaken but i don’t care. Even if it would appear bad driving it is no worse than theirs and the aren’t following a bicycle! We were navigating to the start fo a circuit that goes around Seville, into ten centre out a different way then back to where it started. We came across a road block so we stopped. I took the opportunity to give The Cyclist a large cold can of Monster energy drink. He stood under a tree to guzzle it. He says he has drunk 7 litres today and I know he hadn’t stopped for a pee so it must be damn hot! Before we pulled away I checked the temp and it said 49C. Now that is scorching. It amazes me how the locals are fully dressed like its only 20C!
As I drove searched for songs to complement today. I’ve played those listed and noted a couple that the Cyclist and I thought of. Now I want you to help us by seeing if you can think of some others. I may very well have them, or not. The a boss, CBR Princess and The Scottish Biker are usually pretty hot with their music knowledge so I am waiting interested to see what they come up with, but please all have a go and let’s see how long we can make the list.
Soundbites
In Time – the Mavericks (entire album)
Moonlight Kiss – Raul Malo. ( please listen to it and I dare you not to tap your foot)
Special Brew – Bad Manners
Heatwave – Martha and the Vandellas
The sun is shining – Bob Marley
Here comes the Sun – The Beatles
Shine – Aswad
Summer sun – Texas
Sunshine – Gabrielle
Mr Blue Sky – ELO
The sun always shines on TV – Aha
Summer night city – Abba
In the summer time – Mungo jerry
Rock Lobster – B52’s (think about it…..)
I am the black old of the Sun – Nuyorican Soul
What isn’t on playlist:
Fields of gold – Sting
Fire – the crazy world of Arthur brown
5 Responses
49 degrees – I would be struggling to sit in that heat let alone cycle.
Loving the pictures
As for some suitable tracks, here’s a few from me:
Heat of the Moment – Asia.
The Heat Is On – Glenn Frey
Feelin Hot Hot Hot – Arrow.
Hot Thing – Prince
Disco Inferno – The Trammps (Or Eddie Murphy as Donkey in Shrek! )
Hot Fun In the Summer – Sly and the Family Stone
Heatwave – The Jam
Heart Dies Down – Kaiser Chiefs
Seasons in the Sun – Terry Jacks
Or for a bit of cooling try Alex by Ezio 🙂
Burn – Deep Purple
Fire – The Crazy World of Arthur Brown
Hot Love – T Rex
Sunshine – The Bees
Dust bowl – Joe Bonamassa
To name a few…..
Little Old Wine Drinker Me – Dean Martin
Red Red Wine – UB40
Wheels on Fire – Julie Driscoll/Brian Auger & the Trinity
Road to Hell – Chris Rea
Sweets for my Sweet – The Searchers
Holdin On – Flume (especially after 7 litres and no pee!!)
Feeling Hot Hot Hot – The Merrymen
On the Road Again – Canned Heat
Frozen Orange Juice – Peter Sarstedt
Here comes the sun, cockney rebel? Bring me sunshine, morecambe and wise?
Ah. I knew you all wouldn’t let me down. Great tracks.
As I post this comment we are a few days ahead of stage seven as I have not had an Internet connection strong enough to post, and to be honest I was winded by some news. But today zip,an to catch up……